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How Colwood made Western Investor’s top five list

Colwood is picked among the top five towns for investors in 2021 by Western Investor and current multimillion-dollar action shows why
Rapid new home construction at Royal Bay, Colwood. | Darren Stone, Times Colonist

Look at Colwood these days and it’s as though a conveyor belt is rolling out ­hundreds of millions of dollars of planned investment in ­commercial, light ­industrial and residential ­projects across the Greater Victoria seaside community. (Editor’s note: Colwood was selected among the top five places for real estate investors for 2021. The full “top town” report is featured in the November 2020 issue of Western Investor.)

“What isn’t happening in Colwood right? That’s sort of where we are at,” said Colwood Mayor Rob Martin.

Colwood is becoming more ­economically diverse and self-­sufficient. It is smaller in population and size than neighbour Langford, a powerhouse for growth in the region.

“Colwood is at a really pivotal time right now where we’re shifting from a bedroom community to something very dynamic and I think dynamic is good,” Martin said.

“I talk about trying to create ­pillars within our community around the arts, around culture, around parks.” It’s about creating a lifestyle where citizens can get outdoors and enjoy its seven kilometres of waterfront and more than 50 parks, he said.

“We are not building out to be a suburb of Victoria. We are sincerely attempting to build our own city — our own city that supports itself.”

The projects underway and planned will deliver local payrolls and ­permanent jobs, allowing residents to live and work in their own community.

“We are going to be employing ­thousands — and I mean that literally — thousands of construction workers in the next five years,” Martin said.

Colwood’s growing population of about 17,000 is predicted to reach 26,500 by 2038.

Construction value of new homes alone, built between January and July this year, is $36.478 million.

Two planned projects, GableCraft’s Latoria South development at Royal Bay, where it is already building on its Latoria North lands, and Seacliff ­Properties’ adjacent Royal Beach, would together create more than 5,000 new homes in a range of ­housing types, plus commercial areas with offices.

The mayor, a supporter of mass transit, said planned higher density housing will attract B.C. Transit, helping to improve transportation options. Martin said he will continue to pursue the idea of a passenger ferry link between Colwood at Royal Bay and downtown Victoria, even though B.C.’s transportation minister has put the idea on hold.

A decision needs to be made shortly because a ferry would need specific infrastructure built, he said.

Recent municipal wins include attracting the Royal B.C. Museum to Royal Bay, where a 14,000 square-metre building for archives, collections and research will be built. A new Netflix 10-episode series is being filmed in Colwood. And a new elementary school is going up at Royal Bay between Latoria Boulevard and Metchosin Road.

A $26-million office and warehouse complex for Victoria Shipyards is planned in the new Allandale district. Omicron Development Inc. and Lotus Capital Corp. are partnering in developing a 20-acre mixed use site at Veterans Memorial Parkway and Allandale Road, with an estimated build out value of $100 million.

Locally owned Big Wheel Burger has set up its fifth location using a trailer next to Corona Foods at 2155 Sooke Rd.

“We are all pretty excited to give it a go and we are really happy to be in Colwood. We wanted to be there for a while,” said founder Calen McNeil.

A reduced menu will be offered initially, Tuesdays to Saturdays. About seven new workers are being hired, with numbers expected to grow to 15 once the outlet moves to daily operation in about two months, he said.

None of the Big Wheel outlets are offering sit-down service these days because of the pandemic. The owners are looking for a bricks-and-mortar location in Colwood.

Frank Bourree, chair of the South Island Prosperity Partnership, sees “tremendous opportunity” in Colwood. “The demand and growth has been really pent-up out there.”

There’s plenty of opportunity for housing density, along with commercial and industrial space, he said.

“Colwood has sort of been in the shadow of Langford but it’s got great potential.”